The present invention relates to a storage cassette for storing a plurality of disk-shaped information carriers having high storage density such as, for example, an optically-readable video disk or an optically-readable digital record. The inventive cassette construction is generally of a type including a flat, box-shaped bottom portion and a removable or, respectively, hinged cover portion closing the bottom portion at its upper side. When such storage cassettes are employed for optically readable video disks or optically readable digital sound recordings, then, in addition to a certain protection against external influences, such cassettes must also provide sufficient protection against disk warping due to high requirements made of freedom from warp. Apart from the fact that the information carrier must be stored flat in the cassette, it must also be seen to that a potential warping of the cassette is not transferred to the disc carrier within the cassette.
Commonly assigned U.S. Ser. No. 459,232, filed Jan. 19, 1983, concerns a cassette construction for accomodating the high demands made of the disks' freedom from warp wherein the floor of the bottom portion supports the information carrier only in the central area thereof, free of information tracks, on a support elevated relative to the actual floor area on a central peg arrangement extending beyond the upper surface of the support. In the stored condition of the information carrier, the peg arrangement matched to the diameter of the center hole of said information carrier engages into said center hole. In order to guarantee a firm seating of the information carrier, the peg arrangement is expediently shaped into a clamping means. This storage cassette design meets the high demands made of the freedom from warp in the information carrier in an extremely advantageous fashion since no warping of the information carrier should be expected given warping of the storage cassette because the information carrier is only supported centrally on the elevated rest floor part.
It has also been proposed in commonly assigned U.S. Ser. No. 421,281, filed Sept. 22, 1982, to provide a hinged container in the manner of a cassette acceptance container for a magnetic tape cassette into which the actual disc container is inserted.
However, it is believed that not only individual packagings are commercially desired but also cassette packages which enable a combination or a plurality of disk-shaped information carriers to form a repertory collection. An object of the present invention is to design a storage cassette for acceptance of two and more disk-shaped information carriers in the form of a multi-disk storage cassette which also protects against disk warping.